Indie Game: Tartarus
by nalunatics
Summary: A commission Lucy is a minor game developer trying to make her way in the industry. So far, she's had no luck, but when a friend introduces her game to a fiery game reviewer, will her luck turn around?


Lucy sighed as she looked at her computer screen, the number of downloads on her game resting on the same number: seventeen. It had plateaued at seventeen about a month after its release, not that only seventeen downloads was anywhere _near_ good. It wasn't even _okay_ it was dismal, it was terrible. Lucy had poured her heart and soul into it for it to only crash and burn.

Lucy was an indie game developer; her and a few friends, with the knowledge and technology to produce a video game, decided that they were going to make a kind of abstract survivalist game. Players could build a character, a little creature of sorts, out of premade choices. Once the player created their character, they would have to survive different levels, based on different places in nature, like jungles, rain forests, and deserts. What made it abstract was, aside from having to protect your character and fend off minor enemies that were other dark creatures in the levels, there was no tangible villain. The main boss of the game was darkness itself. The player would constantly be on the run from darkness, only light would be able to ultimately save them. They could go through the game and collect light shards to build weaponry to fend themselves from the dark creatures, and solve puzzles to move on to the next level. However, the looming darkness was constantly moving in, so they couldn't take too long on each level or you would have to start over from the player's last check point. Lucy had thought that her and her team had developed an interesting and unique game concept that people would enjoy and at least have fun with it and use it as a way to relax in between the typical combat games.

That, however, didn't seem to be in Lucy's cards since she seemed to spend most of her days just staring at the download counter, never seeing it move. So, Lucy dragged herself up from her desk, hoping to find some relaxation in a cup of tea. Her mind was a cluttered mess; if the game never increased in popularity, she and her team would have lost out on a decent amount of money between them, and Lucy was not at a financial standpoint in her life to take the hit. Her stomach felt sick and she felt horrible for ever proposing the idea of the game.

Lucy sighed and steeped her tea, watching as the steam swirled above the rim of the cup. How simple of an action and how much Lucy wished she could be like the steam, just gently floating away. For a moment, she just stared down at her cup until she heard the chime of a new message. She could only assume it was the girl she met through YouTube who she had become fast friends with.

 _LittlestStrauss: Hey, Lucy! How are you?_

The message brightened her day a bit; it was Lisanna, Lucy had been right. Lisanna Strauss had been one of the first people to download the game and she and Lucy had quickly become friends due to the outpouring positivity Lisanna gave about the game. She loved the game and had messaged Lucy gushing about how obsessed she had become with it. The game was almost worth it because of Lisanna's happiness and positivity about it, but only almost.

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: I'm okay. How are you?_

Lucy tried not to sound too self pitying, she was really having a rough day and she was plagued by worry of not being able to support herself, and letting down her team. The chime of a new message sounded and Lucy smiled at her screen; Lisanna knew her too well at this point.

 _LittlestStrauss: Are you worried about the game?_

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: It's still at seventeen downloads. I'm afraid that it's just not going to be what I thought it would be._

Lucy swallowed hard, pushing down the lump that was forming in her throat. She watched as the little bubble popped up, telling her that Lisanna was typing. Lisanna was a great friend, she provided Lucy with the comfort and support that she was lacking, and had given her constructive criticism on the game that had helped her better it.

 _LittlestStrauss: It's only been a month, there's still hope! Chin up, Lucy :)_

Lucy sighed and smiled, leaning back in her chair and staring at she and Lisanna's chat. Lisanna was right, there was still plenty of time for the game to grow, but she needed the right publicity. Since Lucy and her team were still new to the field, not a lot of people had heard of them and didn't really give them a chance to become known. If they didn't gather more of a following, there was no way their game was ever going to take off. Lucy decided that she was going to take to any platform, once again, and promote her game.

The next day, Lucy went on Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook, as well as making a video for YouTube; she turned to any social media she could and made hopeful posts promoting the game. It went largely unnoticed; she got some kind souls who attempted to gain the attention of their own followers by sharing Lucy's post, but it mainly fell on deaf ears. Lucy didn't have many followers to promote too, she hadn't had time to build up a fan base on social media since she was so busy with the project, but she figured she'd throw the posts over to her friend Erza, who had a preexisting following. Erza was a cosplayer mainly and had developed quite the fan base through that, so they had been doing most of the promoting through her social media, but it still proved to not be enough. Her YouTube video got a decent amount of view, but nothing much came out of it besides someone leaving a comment telling Lucy she was hot. That really boiled Lucy's blood and she had come to her wits end. Ready to call it quits and cut her losses, Lucy sat down at her desk when her chat chimed once again.

 _LittlestStrauss: Lucy!_

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: What's up?_

 _LittlestStrauss: Have you checked your downloads today?_

The question took Lucy off guard; she actually hadn't checked the download number, she had been trying to stay away from checking it because she was almost certain it was going to make her go insane.

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: No, I haven't. How come?_

 _LittlestStrauss: Go check, trust me!_

Lucy frowned at the screen and logged into the game's administrative page. To her incredible surprise, the download number had jumped to 137 almost overnight. While she stared at it, eyes wide with shock, she watched the number tick up once more as another download registered.

"Holy shit!" Lucy cried out, startling her little white dog, Plue, who had been napping in the corner of her room. She quickly got back onto the chat and furiously tapped away at the keyboard, sending a message back to Lisanna.

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: Holy crap! What happened? It went up to 138!_

 _LittlestStrauss: I'm friends with this guy on here. He does game reviews and does livestreams and videos of gameplay. I mentioned your game to him…_

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: And?_

 _LittlestStrauss: And he loved it! He's got a HUGE following, he just posted a video review of it! Go check it out, his handle is FireDragonKingNatsu!_

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: Lisanna! You're the BEST! THANK YOU!_

Lucy shakily typed in the name that Lisanna had given to her, and the mystery guy's channel popped up immediately. Lucy was surprised that she had never heard of him before since he had just about three million subscribers. She felt shameful for not doing more research on who to market the game towards before making it.

As soon as she brought up his page, her eyes went straight for the most recent video and, sure enough, it was titled _Indie Game Tartarus Review_. _Tartarus_ was the name that Lucy and her team had developed; they thought it fit and gave the game a more ominous and compelling title to draw players in. Lucy shakily clicked on the video and was struck when a boy with adorably disheveled pink hair popped onto the screen, a playful grin on his face, and his green eyes sparkling at the camera.

" _Welcome to my channel, everyone!_ " He boisterously greeted his viewers, his bright smile never leaving his face. " _For those of you who are new to my channel, I'm FireDragonKingNatsu or just Natsu! I post game reviews and gameplay videos every week, so if you're into that, hit the subscribe button below!_ " Lucy almost immediately his subscribe as if she were in a trance. She was mesmerized by Natsu from the way he spoke to the way he moved as he interacted with his viewers.

" _Today I will be reviewing an awesome indie game that a friend of mine sent to me; shout out to Lisanna!_ " Natsu grinned into the camera and actually threw a link up on the screen briefly to Lisanna's channel. She was also a cosplayer and actually occasionally worked with Erza. " _The game is called 'Tartarus' and I'd like to point out that that's a pretty badass name right off the bat! Props to the developers! Moving on,_ " Lucy felt her heart flutter and her cheeks heat up; what a silly thing to get worked up over, but Lucy couldn't help but feel like he was speaking directly to her. He was praising _her_ game and her team, she felt overwhelmed with a sense of pride and gratefulness for the guy and she had never even spoken to him.

" _The game has an awesome concept where the boss is anything but conventional- but! You have to go check it out for yourselves to find out what that is! You'll have a blast going through levels and fighting off enemies and collecting Light Shards along the way. The game is intellectual as well as visually stunning, and it's a great way to relax after something like a ranked League match that you lost…_ " Lucy couldn't help but laugh at his humor and absolutely adore his optimism about the game. She felt tears well up in her eyes as she refreshed the game's download page and watched the numbers rise steadily. A sense of hope coursed through her and she thanked her lucky stars for having met Lisanna and that she knew Natsu. Lucy was overwhelmed with the amazement of how things had suddenly turned around for her, and she was giddy with excitement for the future.

" _Anyway, the game is great, but don't just take my word for it! Go download it and check it out for yourselves. The link to the game's page is below in the description. Thanks for watching and look out for new videos every week! I'm all fired up!_ " And like that, the video was complete and Lucy sat there, staring at the frozen thumbnail of Natsu's smiling face. After a moment of silence to herself, Lucy sprang back onto her and Lisanna's chat and typed away rapidly.

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: LISANNA! YOU ARE THE BEST!_

 _LittlestStrauss: Aren't I? Just kidding. I knew he'd love it! Natsu is super sweet, maybe you should message him! He could be a good connection for Tartarus and any future games you may do!_

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: That's a great idea, Lisanna! Thank you, I may do just that :)_

 _LittlestStrauss: Let me know how everything works out!_

Lucy let out a breath of relief and messaged her team's group chat letting them know the good news. Of course, they were thrilled and all wanted to profusely thank Lisanna. Lucy promised them that she would pass on the thanks and even planned a celebration outing that she would invite Lisanna too. Lucy was feeling great, it was amazing how in just one night her whole world could be turned around completely. She looked through the comments on Natsu's video and was amazed by the positive responses that were pouring in. People were saying how much they loved the game, what levels they though were the best and what were the hardest. They were praising how creative and unique the game was, and while there was strategy involved in it as well as enemies, the game was also relaxing. There were also people who were responding optimistically and saying that they would download it as soon as they could. Lucy also noticed that some of her own videos about the game, and the game's team page, were getting positive reviews from people who were playing the game. Lucy was in utter amazement and she absolutely needed to thank Natsu for all that he had done for her.

It was already late, but Lucy told herself that, before she went to bed, she was going to send a message to Natsu, it was the proper thing to do. However, she found herself hovering her cursor over the message button on Natsu's page, nerves coursing through her. She was extremely nervous about sending a message to him; he was so well known and it intimidated her. Even though he had done a video on her game, Lucy wasn't sure that he would even respond to a message that she sent to him. She figured that it was a one time thing and he would move on, forgetting about the game. She jumped back and forth from wanting to send a message and wanting to just leave it be and be happy that he had even done a video.

Lucy groaned and pressed her forehead into her desk in frustration. She knew that Lisanna had told her to message him, and she had said that he was a nice person, so that gave Lucy a little bit of confidence in the matter. She had sat there contemplating the action for almost an hour before finally deciding to open up the chat and began typing out a message to _FireDragonKingNatsu_.

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: Hello! My name is Lucy… I am the lead developer of Tartarus, and I just wanted to thank you for promoting our game! Of course, I have to thank Lisanna as well, she's a great friend and she was the one who introduced you to Tartarus. I truly hope that you enjoy playing it, and thank you again for making a video about it! You have a great channel, so I appreciate you taking the time to feature us! I hope you have a great night!_

Lucy let out a shaky breath, rereading her message what seemed a hundred times, and after some working herself up, she finally hit send. She decided to close out YouTube so she wouldn't obsess over how long it took him to reply, if he even would, and check her download count one more time before she headed off to bed. It was at 549 and still increasing. Lucy was yet again in awe, her mouth hung open slightly in shock, since that morning, it had gone up by 411 downloads in just hours. Lucy knew that she would sleep well that night with high hopes for the morning.

Lucy woke with a start and felt the happiest she had in over a month. She actually drew the blinds open and opened the windows letting the spring air flow inside. Plue wagged his tail happily as if to congratulate her, and Lucy smiled, patting his head affectionately. She took a long, hot bat and got dressed and had breakfast before checking her computer. She felt stress free and wanted to have a relaxing morning. She hadn't realized how neglectful she had been to herself. She hadn't been eating very well for the past few weeks and her hygiene had been rather unsavory. She was disappointed in herself because she was one to want to keep up on her appearance and enjoyed eating healthy. Instant ramen and a quick shower every other day was not what Lucy had hoped she'd be doing with her life in her twenties. Lucy knew that it was all due to the stress from the game failing for so long, it would depress anyone to not be successful and have the fear of being labeled as a failure. She was just glad that she had the opportunity to turn her life around and finally be able to take a breath of relief.

Lucy felt rejuvenated after some well needed and well deserved self care, and brushed through her hair, styling it into a neat ponytail, humming quietly to herself, and leaving some strands of hair down to frame her face. She put on a bit of makeup and dressed in a white tank top and a blue fitted skirt with thigh high brown boots. She was feeling good and promised Plue to take him out for a walk in Soul Gate Park later in the day.

Finally, Lucy logged into the game's administration page and nearly choked seeing that the downloads had jumped from 549 to 6,290. Her heartbeat was in her ears as she stared at the number in shock. She screenshotted it and sent it to the team's group chat and to Lisanna, and then shakily logged into YouTube. The little red notification was lit up letting her know that she had a new message. Lucy hesitantly opened it and with a gasp of excitement, she realized Natsu had messaged her back. Yet again her mouse hovered over the button to open the message; she was apprehensive because the message could be anything from him being a nice guy and just briefly responding or he could be telling her to piss off and that it was just a one time thing and to not message him again. The second option seemed a little bit less likely since Lisanna had talked him up so much, but it was hard to tell when you're only communicating with someone over the internet. So, finally, Lucy clicked open the message, actually squeezing her eyes shut as the page reloaded to reveal the message.

 _FireDragonKingNatsu: YO! Thanks for messaging me! It was my pleasure to make a video for your game- I had no idea that YOU were the one who headed the project!_

Lucy was put off for a moment, it sounded as though Natsu had already known about Lucy. She thought it was unlikely, but Lucy had used her personal account to message him. She thought that maybe he had seen some of her videos that she used her personal account to post; she was a small time artist as well and she posted her speed paints and processes. She had a small following, but she enjoyed doing it.

 _FireDragonKingNatsu: Lisanna talks about you ALL the time! I feel like I know you already- if that's not weird to say? Anyway, yeah, I'm really glad that Lisanna brought your game to me, it's really amazing. You and your team did a great job, it's wicked good for a beginner team like you guys, I couldn't even tell that it was your first game!_

Lucy's chest swelled with pride for her team and was flattered that Lisanna was talking her up to Natsu so much.

 _FireDragonKingNatsu: Hey, I was wondering if you'd actually be willing to do an interview with me for my channel sometime if you're anywhere near Magnolia?_

Her eyes bulged, Natsu lived in the same town she did _and_ he wanted to do an interview with her. Lucy felt excitement surge through her as well as nervousness. She quickly tapped out a reply before her brain even had time to think it over.

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: Natsu, that sounds like a great idea. I would love to do that! When would work best for you?_

And suddenly, just like that, Natsu and Lucy began messaging each other every day consistently. They had planned to do the interview about a week and a half from the day that they had first started talking. As they kept in contact, Lucy felt drawn in by his carefree and easy going personality. He was funny and kind with a little flare to him, and Lisanna had been completely right, he was a great guy.

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: Lisanna, I really don't know how to thank you, but everything that's been happening has been because of you! 3_

 _LittlestStrauss: Don't thank me, Lucy! You created an amazing game, you and your team deserve it :)_

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: Thank you! Oh, by the way, Natsu has been great by the way! We've been talking like every day since we agreed to meet._

 _LittlestSrtauss: Ooh, I know, Lucy ;) Hehe, Natsu has been nonstop talking about you! I think you two would be so cute together~_

Lucy blanched and then felt her face flare in embarrassment. Natsu was talking about her? She hadn't put much thought into it, but the more she did the more she realized what she was actually feeling. Not only had Natsu help her game springboard from failure, he had also become a fast friend to her. She was drawn in by his kindness, but she also just felt drawn to him in general, and she hadn't put much thought into it until that moment. She realized that what she was feeling or what she had felt was a bit of attraction for the good natured game reviewer. Lucy felt herself begin to panic at the thought; she was supposed to have an interview with him in just a few days and she was going to be a blushing mess!

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: What? What do you mean…_

 _LittlestStrauss: I think Natsu likes you, silly! And from what I've heard from you, I think you've got a thing for him as well ;)_

 _CelestialSpiritLucy: That was just me being grateful! He helped promote Tartarus…_

 _LittlestStrauss: Whatever you say~ But just so you know, he did say he thought you were cute~ Hehe… But you didn't hear that from me ;)_

Lucy's jaw literally dropped to the group in shock, her face burning in embarrassment. She shoved herself away from her desk, she needed some fresh air. She raced outside, breathing in and letting the sun hit her face. Her heart was racing and embarrassment washed over her as she recalled the conversations that she and Natsu had had. He had slipped in a few compliments her way, had been a bit jokey with her, but she figured he was just being nice. She guessed that she had tried to ignore her brain telling her how attractive she though Natsu was and that the way he would sometimes bite his lip in his videos would drive her crazy with the thought of what it would be like to kiss him. She definitely didn't want to acknowledge that his voice and his laugh nearly had her losing her mind. All of her feelings that she had apparently suppressed were crashing over her and there was nothing she could do to stop them.

" _Mrrow?_ " A questioning sounding chirrup came from her feet and Lucy glanced down to see a curious looking, blue furred cat sitting before her, looking at her as if she'd gone insane.

"Oh, hello." Lucy knelt down and held her hand out. The cat happily rubbed his face against her hand, purring loudly. Lucy eventually scooped him up and flipped his collar around to read the tag. "Happy is your name? That's fitting since you're just the sweetest. Why haven't I seen you around here before?"

"That's because he's _supposed_ to stay inside." A raspy voice replied and Lucy froze for a moment and then slowly turned to face the person that the voice belonged to. Natsu was walking slowly over from the neighboring house and confusion washed over her.

"N-Natsu?"

"The one and only," He smirked at her. He was taller than she had expected, about a head taller than her, and more muscular than she could have seen from his videos. "What, were you scoping out the place before our interview?"

"Hey, don't flatter yourself too much! I didn't know where you live, this is my house." Lucy retorted, her cheeks burning. Natsu's eyes widened in surprise as if he had just realized that they lived next to one another.

"How the hell did we never notice this before?"

"Beats me." Lucy shrugged, attempting to play it cool, but she was lucky she was holding Happy as she buried her burning face into his fur. She looked shyly back up at Natsu and found him staring at her, an expression on his face that she couldn't quite read, but a smile played on his lips. "Your cat is adorable."

"Well, since he's so adorable, he's really good at finding adorable things."

"Huh?" Lucy questioned and Natsu's ears turned pink in embarrassment.

"U-uh, it was just a bad joke. I just mean that I think you're pretty and I'm glad I got to meet you in person rather than just seeing you through a screen." He grinned and Lucy nearly choked.

"Th-thank you." Lucy stammered, holding Happy's purring body closer to her.

"Hey, you wanna come in? Maybe we could go over some interview stuff or… You know, just hang out, get to know each other or whatever...?" Natsu rambled and Lucy smiled into Happy's fur; _so Natsu can get flustered too, huh?_

"I'd really like that." Lucy smiled at him brightly, gaining a little confidence. "Show me the way, I've got Happy!"


End file.
